How do you think healthcare professionals manage to combat pandemics and treat new infections and diseases? Ideally, without technological advancements in diagnostic tests and medical laboratory science, managing and preventing chronic illnesses would be challenging. By using Antigen Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) rather than the polymerase chain reaction (PRC) approach, the world managed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
Medical scientists spend their years in laboratories and fields to discover new approaches for testing, treating, and preventing diseases. Because of this, the world is enjoying high-quality care. Therefore, baycitizen.org provides a comprehensive overview of the benefits and the importance of research in medical technology.
How Technology in Medical Research Improves Patient Safety
Increase adherence to a treatment regime
Why do some patients neither comply with medication nor complete hospital visits? When you visit a doctor’s office, a physician or nurse practitioner records your symptoms on a computer or piece of paper and recommends some diagnostic tests before writing a prescription. In most cases, you might never participate in implementing the care plans. What do you think could be an implication of such treatment?
You might not be comfortable with a specific technique for administering the medication. For example, you might prefer an oral to an intravenous approach. For that reason, the probability of you finishing the dosage would be minimal.
However, research in healthcare technology has enabled hospitals to integrate systems whereby a patient can access his or her medical report remotely. As a consequence, a client seeking treatment can understand the reason for the doctor recommending a certain route of administering the drug. Its contribution to fostering adherence to care plans explains why research is important in medical technology.
It reduces waiting time
Have you ever heard of a scenario whereby a patient’s symptoms aggravated while on the waiting list for a consultation? In most cases, out-of-pocket transportation expenses force most individuals to visit nearby medical centers even if they will find long queues. As such, patients will wait a long period before seeing a doctor.
Symptoms of some patients would worsen to the extent of either causing permanent disabilities or even premature deaths. However, technology in medical research has helped to solve this problem. For instance, with the innovation of e-health services such as remote diagnosis and treatment, a patient can receive care overseas, reducing the over-dependence on a local center. Technological advancements in medical fields have revolutionized how doctors deliver care to consumers.
How Research in Healthcare Technology Advances Clinical Trials
Enhances recruitment of participants
Other than funding, why does a researcher struggle to recruit patients in a clinical trial even after getting ethical approval from relevant bodies? It is worth understanding that geographical distance tends to understand the inclusion of participants from under-served communities. As such, the research sample size would be less likely to represent the characteristics of the target population.
Without the use of medical technology in medical science, it would be difficult to overcome the problem associated with distance. Regardless of the geographical location of the participants, research on the information system has shown the role of social media in involving them in clinical trials. What role do you think technology plays in reaching out to participants?
A researcher can use social media to educate potential human subjects on the importance and repercussion of participating in a clinical trial. In other words, it allows the scientist to effectively implement virtual education before, during, and after an investigation. Specific technologies that a researcher can use include electronic data capture, electronic clinical outcome assessment, and electronic informed consent, which can aid the recruitment of human subjects.
Fosters decentralization of evidence-based findings
The advent of technologies such as telehealth and telemedicine, whereby the patient and healthcare professionals can access medical information via an app on their devices, has led to the development of many electronic databases and repositories. For instance, the MEDLINE database contains abundant life science information that assists in researching and enhancing care delivery. For that reason, research in medical science, with a specific interest in technologies, has contributed to decentralizing trials.
Even though decentralized trials can jeopardize patient safety because of limited face-to-face interactions, they have necessitated the delivery of any medical and healthcare papers from a research paper service CustomWritings.com. In particular, quality experts at this online-based company can solely rely on the Internet to conduct a systematic review. For instance, on this website, students who require professional academic writing help can purchase custom materials written from scratch. If you are pursuing a master’s degree or Ph.D., it would be best to consider taking advantage of 24/7 assistance to get more papers for publication.
Why Is Research Important in Medical Technology in the Modern World?
It increases the confidentiality of personal information
While hospitals and healthcare organizations continue to integrate the latest technologies into their operations, their databases become the target of cybercriminals. For that reason, funding research in this field is necessary.
Scientific explorations on user identification and data encryption are necessary to safeguard patients’ personal information. The purpose of this research would be to test the possibility of a breach. Besides focusing on these technical safeguards, the studies should explore the role of administrative measures in increasing the confidentiality of personal information.
It enhances the training of healthcare professionals
Do you healthcare professionals must undergo refresher training to guarantee optimal care for the patients? Even if a doctor or nurse gets a practicing license today, it does not mean the end of their study. For instance, a discovery of a diagnostic tool means a healthcare professional should know how to use it safely. What does this mean? The hospital should fund personnel training. However, due to time constraints and high workloads, most nurses and doctors would be reluctant to participate in any education program.
Fortunately, research in medical science has shown that technology can remedy this issue. In particular, the organization can opt to implement virtual training whereby a nurse or doctor can participate in the education program while at home. Moreover, the tutor can send his or her recording to trainees rather than forcing them to sit in a room the entire day. You cannot fail to appreciate the contribution of technology in helping organizations and people achieve their goals.
Generally speaking, research is important in medical field as it leads to the discovery of not only novel therapeutic products (medicine) but also effective diagnostic tools. For instance, the application of digital and innovation tools helps the world to combat and cut the coronavirus infection chain. Hospitals are also implementing telehealth and telemedicine to provide quality services to patients. Therefore, the current and future success of guaranteeing optimum patient safety would depend on the potential to implement technology in research and care delivery.
